Ferne Clyffe State Park

During our travels from Ohio toward Texas we spent some time at Ferne Clyffe State Park on 2,430 acres in Johnson County, Illinois.  Located near Goreville and close to both I-24 and I-57, the park features numerous dramatic bluffs and several seasonal waterfalls fed from runoff from the upper bluffs.

On our first evening after dinner we hiked to the Ferne Clyffe Lake created in the late 1950s by an earthen dam across the Buck Branch Creek.

 

The next morning we took an easy hike up the Big Rocky Hollow Trail to one of the waterfalls.  The trail followed a dry creek bed through the hollow with tall bluffs on both sides.

 

 

When we reached the waterfalls we found it to be dry, but then we remembered that the falls here are seasonal and there had been no rain recently.   Still it was an enjoyable hike.

There are so many beautiful locations along our journeys and we delight in finding new discoveries.

Grace Strip

High speed highways these days are designed and built with a narrow corrugated strip of pavementy outside the driving lane. It’s sometimes called "the rumble strip" because that’s what it sounds like when a distracted driver allows her vehicle to veer off the roadway. It’s also sometimes called "the wake up strip" to describe its effect upon a dozing driver who lets his car drift across that built-in noisemaker.

In some states, that teeth-chattering strip is immediately outside the white line marking the outside of the driving lane. Other states leave a narrow area of smooth pavement between the white line and that jarring strip of corduroy asphalt.

After many years of drifting back and forth across the painted outer limit of the driving lane, I have come to call that small smooth area outside the white line "the grace strip." Without that strip of "grace," I am immediately "punished" for my "sin" of inaccurate steering by the raucous noise and unsettling vibrations of that hidden highway "hell." That little "grace strip," on the other hand, gives me time to "repent" of my "sins" and correct my course before the "punishment" of the rumble strip sets my nerves on edge and distracts me even worse!

Thank God for grace – on the highway, and all along my pathway through life!　

Dinner with History

Last Sunday, we went to Stockport Mill Inn and Restaurant in Stockport, Ohio.

 

Stockport is located on the western bank of the Muskingum River, a 45 minute drive over beautiful Ohio-Appalachia hills from our son's house near Athens.  We were about 175 years too late to see the little town in its glory days.  But the Stockport Mill still stands beside the dam that held the water which turned the mill wheels to grind flour.  That same water power turned the turbines to produce electricity for the community.  The Stockport Mill also served as a safe place on the Underground Railroad which ran along the banks of the Muskingum for nearly 25 miles.

 

 

But those days are long gone now, lost in the mists of history.  The Stockport Mill ceased its milling operations in 1997, but the huge, four story building has not been left empty to grieve that loss.  In the recent past, the building has been converted into a hotel and restaurant.  Their Sunday noon buffet is varied and out-of-this-world delicious!  The hotel has only eleven large rooms, but each is equipped with a spa or hot tub.  The décor of the place is utterly antique with the furniture tastefully arranged around many pieces of the original milling equipment which have been left in place.

 

Across the river, another piece of Stockport's history has been kept alive and active.

 

 

Long before the invention of the automobile or the construction of all-weather roads, the river was the main highway for those towns fortunate enough to be located on its banks.  The dam which ran the mill on the western bank of the river made it necessary to construct a lock on the eastern bank so ship traffic could continue on their way from Zanesville to Marietta.

 

 

That lock has been preserved, still operates, and is available for use by boat traffic up and down the river.

 

 

The lock tender, seen here talking with our son, was a knowledgeable and genial man.  He explained to us how the lock works and it was obvious to us that the tender, who both closes and opens the lock for river traffic, would have to be as big and strong as he appears to be!

 

In the 1840s, when river traffic was at its height, one of the most successful river pilots was a woman named Jane McMillan.  She was called "Old Jane" and she was reported to have known the river so well that she could navigate it safely even at night! 

 







 

So, stuffed with good food and several fascinating history lessons, we headed home, once again winding our way through those scenic hills and valleys of southeastern Ohio.

Cincinnati, Ohio

"When the end of the world comes, I want to be in Cincinnati because it's always twenty years behind the times."  (http://www.twainquotes.com/Cincinnati.html says This quote has been attributed to Mark Twain, but until the attribution can be verified, the quote should not be regarded as authentic.)

The above quotation attributed to Mark Twain was mentioned by the docent who gave us a tour of the Union Terminal building in Cincinnati currently housing the Cincinnati Museum Center.

 

This huge structure whose rotunda is the largest half dome in the United States was begun in 1929 in an effort to combine the five separate railroad stations in Cincinnati into one Union Terminal.   It was completed in the year 1933 just as railroad travel was beginning to decline because of the increased utilization of automobile and airline travel.   That decline in railroad travel gave rise to the use of the opening quote attributed to Mark Twain, 

Train traffic increased for a brief time during World War II as railroads became the main means of military transport.  But the end of the war in 1945 again reduced train travel to a mere trickle.

Fifteen local businesses were represented in the industrial mosaics designed and created by German American artist Winhold Reiss in the train concourse.  Each mural is 22 feet high and 110 feet long.

 

Train service left Union Terminal in 1972.  However. in 1991 Amtrack returned and continues to provide one train eastbound and one train westbound each day.  The main attractions today are the three museums housed in Union Terminal:  Cincinnati History Museum, Museum of Natural History & Science, and Duke Energy Children’s Museum

 In addition, the Museum Center houses the Cincinnati History Library and Archives.  MarySue  spent two major blocks of time there,  searching in vain for information about her great-grandfather who apparently lived in Cincinnati for a while.   To her knowledge nobody has ever been able to accurately identify that great-grandfather's parents.

During our stay in Cincinnati we have stayed in the Winton Woods Campground -- one of three campgrounds in the Hamilton County Parks (www.greatparks.org).

 

The campground features full hookup sites as well as water and electric sites and tent sites.

 

 

We have enjoyed the two-mile plus paved hike and bike trail around Winton Lake with views of Winton Woods and the boathouse on the lake.

 

 

Tomorrow, we'll head east for one last visit with our son over the Labor Day weekend.

 

Starved Rock State Park

Along the south bank of the Illinois River less than 100 miles from Chicago is Starved Rock State Park whose scenic trails, canyons, and views from bluffs attract over two million visitors a year.

 

Seen from the Starved Rock bluff is the lodge and restaurant on an opposite bluff where we enjoyed a delightful brunch with family and friends from Peoria and Chicago.

While bird watching is always a popular activity, the numbers of Bald Eagles increases during the winter months since thousands of eagles migrate to this area.

Kankakee River State Park

It was our first visit to Kankakee River State Park, but memories of our one night stay in the campground there makes us want to return in the future.   The park encompasses 4,000 acres along 11 miles of the Kankakee River. 

Since we were there only one night we did not take time to unload the bicycles, but we did enjoy hiking on the 10.5 mile bicycle trail that travels nearly the entire length of the park and includes views of the river like this one.

Bison on the Wabash River

 

It was almost as if we had stepped backward 200 years into the mists of time!  We marveled at a herd of bison grazing peacefully on Indiana grassland near the banks of the Wabash River.

 

 

Almost, but not quite.  The animals were confined behind a sturdy double wire fence and we could hear the sound of vehicles in the distance! No, it wasn't two centuries ago.  In fact, it was just this morning.

 

 

We are again staying at the Ouabache (pronounced "Wabash") State Park near Bluffton, Indiana.  The unique spelling of the name of the park is the French spelling of an Indian word.  The area in which the park is located was home to the Miami tribe of native Americans several centuries ago.

 

The park is lovely.  It has many hiking trails, an accessible fire tower, fishing and boating on a small lake.  It also has a beautiful bike trail which connects to the bike trail into the city of Bluffton.

 

 

We have enjoyed our two-wheeled travel on this route in the past.  But this very foggy morning, it was our feet that were carrying us on our morning walk when we stopped to admire the bison.

 

 

The park and its staff maintain the herd.  Perhaps that is another reminder of the original inhabitants of the Wabash Valley.

 

 

The animals are amazingly large when viewed close-up!  They must be quite used to being watched by humans because none of them paid us the slightest bit of attention!

 

 

The lady who checked us into the campground reported that the bison herd consisted

of about a dozen animals

 

including this spring calf!

 

We really enjoyed this visual history lesson of east central Indiana that we got on our morning walk this morning -- as well as the exercise.